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STEPHEN   DAYE 

and  His  Successors 

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The  establishment  of  a  Printing  Plant 
in  what  was  formerly  British  North 
America  and  the  development  of  the 
Art  of  Printing  at  The  University 
Press,  of  Cambridge,  Massachusetts 

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1639- I921 

CAMBRIDGE,    MASSACHUSETTS 
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STEPHEN    DAY  E 

and  His   Successors 


HISTORICAL    SKETCH 

UST  nineteen  years  after  the 
Pilgrims  moored  their  bark  at 
Plymouth  in  1620,  there  was 
established  at  Cambridge  the 
first  printing  press  in  what 
was  then  British  North  America  and  what 
has  later  become  the  United  States. 

This  beginning  of  printing  here  we  owe 
to  an  English  clergyman,  the  Reverend 
Jose  Glover.  Attracted  by  the  opportuni- 
ties which  he  believed  offered  themselves 
in  America  and  becoming  interested  in  the 
religious  freedom  of  the  Colonies,  he  came 
over  from  England  with  his  family  in  1638. 
He  was  a  man  of  wealth  and  excellent  edu- 
cation and  planned  to  engage  in  the  iron 
[  9  ]  industry 


M   3971 


STEPHEN     DAYE     AND     HIS     SUCCESSORS 

industry  in    the    Colonies   and    to    control 
a  printing  press. 

He  brought  with  him  as  assistants  in  his 
project  the  Daye  family  —  Stephen,  the 
father,  and  his  two  sons,  Stephen,  Jr.,  and 
Matthew.  But  Mr.  Glover  unfortunately 
died  at  sea,  and  as  an  indirect  result  of 
that  fact  Stephen  Daye  became  the  pioneer 
printer  of  this  country. 

It  seems  that  Mrs.  Glover,  the  widow, 
married  Mr.  Dunster,  then  president  of 
Harvard  College,  shortly  after  her  arrival 
in  the  Colonies.  Through  this  marriage 
Dunster  gained  control  of  the  press  and 
types  brought  over  from  England  by  the 
deceased  Glover. 

Stephen  Daye  was  engaged  by  Dunster 
to  run  the  printing  business.  Stephen  was 
not  a  printer,  but  a  locksmith,  and  the 
press  was  actually  operated  by  his  son 
Matthew,  who  had  been  apprenticed  as  a 
printer  in  England.  Stephen,  however,  was 
in  nominal  charge  of  the  press,  as  Matthew 
was  only  eighteen  years  old. 

The  first  productions  by  the  press  under 
[  10  ]  Stephen 


STEPHEN    DAYE     AND     HIS     SUCCESSORS 

Stephen  Daye  and  his  son  Matthew  were 
"The  Freeman's  Oath,"  of  which  no  copy 
is  known,  the  lost  almanac  of  1639,  and 
that  most  precious  piece  of  American  in- 
cunabula, "The  Whole  Booke  of  Psalmes, 
Imprinted  1640,"  sometimes  known  as 
"The  Bay  Psalm  Book"  (see  page  12). 
These  were  followed  by  a  number  of  books 
or  pamphlets  of  a  religious,  legal,  and  edu- 
cational character.  As  the  years  went  on, 
Stephen  Daye  gave  less  and  less  time  to  the 
work  of  the  press  and  interested  himself 
largely  in  prospecting  and  other  projects. 

Thus  the  management  of  the  press,  as 
well  as  its  actual  operation,  passed  from 
Stephen  Daye  to  his  son  Matthew.  Speci- 
mens of  Matthew  Daye's  work  are  extant, 
and  it  is  evident  from  their  appearance 
that  with  practice  in  his  trade  he  made 
great  strides  in  skill  and  craftsmanship. 
His  later  works  are  far  superior  in  work- 
manship to  his  first  efforts.  The  early  mis- 
takes and  blunders  of  the  apprentice  have 
been  eliminated  and  we  see  the  work  of 
the  finished  printer.  Much  of  Matthew's 
[11]  work 


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STEPHEN     DAYE     AND     HIS     SUCCESSORS 

work  was  for  Harvard  College.  He  was  only 
twenty-nine  years  old  when  he  died,  but  to 
him  is  due  much  of  the  credit  which  the 
world  usually  pays  to  his  father,  Stephen, 
as  the  first  printer  in  America.  Stephen 
Daye  himself  died  in  1668. 

Matthew  Daye  was  succeeded  by  Samuel 
Green.  The  press  and  the  original  type 
still  belonged  to  Dunster,  although  Har- 
vard College  had  bought  some  additional 
types  for  the  equipment  of  the  shop. 
Dunster  selected  Samuel  Green  to  run  the 
shop,  although  he  was  not  a  printer  and  had 
no  knowledge  of  the  art.  Green  was  able, 
quick  to  learn,  and  a  hard  worker.  Green's 
connection  with  the  press  began  in  1649. 
He  was  a  fairly  well-educated  man,  and  the 
first  book  he  printed,  "Platform  of  Church 
Discipline/'  etc.,  while  poor  in  presswork, 
was  quite  good  in  spelling  and  punctuation. 

Within  the  next  few  years  it  appears 
that  the  press,  which  up  to  now  had  been 
owned  by  the  Glover  estate  and  controlled 
by  Dunster,  passed  into  the  hands  of  the 
College,  for  in  a  petition  to  the  General 
[  13  ]  Court 


STEPHEN    DAYE    AND    HIS     SUCCESSORS 

Court  in  1658  it  is  stated  that  the  College 
owned  the  press. 

The  petition  in  question  was  the  project 
of  the  Reverend  John  Eliot  and  was  for  the 
purpose  of  buying  twenty  pounds'  worth 
of  type  in  England  to  use  in  the  printing  of 
Mr.  Eliot's  "Indian  Bible. "  The  corpora- 
tion in  England  known  as  the  "Company 
for  the  Propagation  of  the  Gospel  amongst 
the  Heathen  Natives  of  New  England  and 
Parts  adjacent  in  America"  agreed  to  pay 
the  expenses  of  printing  Mr.  Eliot's  ''Indian 
Bible''  and  in  1659  equipped  Green  with  a 
new  press  and  type,  which  were  installed  in 
the  Harvard  Yard  in  a  building  called  the 
"Indian  College."  The  following  year  the 
corporation  in  England  sent  over  Marma- 
duke  Johnson,  a  master  printer,  to  assist 
Green  in  the  work  on  the  Indian  Bible. 

Johnson  was  the  first  master  printer  to 
arrive  in  America.  His  somewhat  tempes- 
tuous career  and  his  influence  on  the  devel- 
opment of  printing  in  America  are  of  more 
than  ordinary  interest.  It  would  seem  that 
Johnson  must  have  found  some  time  to 
[  14  ]  himself 


STEPHEN    DAYE    AND    HIS     SUCCESSORS 

himself  outside  his  endeavors  on  the  Indian 
Bible,  for  in  1661  he  fell  in  love  with  Samuel 
Green's  daughter.  Green  believed  Johnson 
to  be  married,  with  a  wife  in  England, 
and  as  Johnson  persisted  with  the  court- 
ship against  Green's  wishes,  Green  had 
him  brought  into  court.  Under  penalty  of 
twenty  pounds,  Johnson  was  ordered  to 
return  to  England,  where  by  his  own  con- 
fession he  had  a  wife.  He  did  not  return  to 
England,  however,  and  on  the  expiration  of 
his  contract  in  1663,  he  was  discharged. 

It  appears  that  Johnson's  wife  in  England 
was  a  most  unworthy  woman  and  that  only 
his  absence  in  this  country  prevented  his 
getting  a  divorce  from  her.  By  some  means 
a  Mr.  Tracy  in  England,  whose  wife  was 
friendly  with  Mrs.  Johnson,  sent  Mrs.  John- 
son to  the  Barbadoes,  Tracy  being  appar- 
ently worried  by  his  wife's  association  with 
a  woman  of  such  character.  Mrs.  Johnson 
died  on  the  way  there. 

These  facts  were   set   forth  in    a   letter 

which  Johnson  received,  shortly  before  the 

expiration  of  his  contract,  from  his  brother 

[  15  ]  Thomas, 


STEPHEN     DAYE    AND     HIS     SUCCESSORS 

Thomas,  in  England.  Through  the  efforts 
of  the  Reverend  John  Eliot,  who  was  much 
pleased  with  Johnson's  work  on  the  In- 
dian Bible  and  who  evidently  viewed  his 
domestic  troubles  in  a  sympathetic  light, 
Johnson  was  given  another  year's  trial  as 
printer. 

On  appeal  to  a  higher  court  of  the  order 
directing  Johnson  to  return  to  England,  it 
was  decreed  that  the  order  should  be  sus- 
pended until  Johnson  could  obtain  a  cer- 
tificate proving  his  wife's  death.  The  final 
disposition  of  the  case  is  not  known,  as  the 
records  of  the  court  were  destroyed  by  fire 
between  1663  and  1671.  From  Johnson's 
subsequent  continuance  in  America,  how- 
ever, it  would  seem  that  he  eventually 
satisfied  the  court  of  his  wife's  demise. 

During  the  year  of  reengagement,  John- 
son was  employed  in  printing  the  "  Psalms 
in  Metre"  and  Baxter's  "Call  to  the  Un- 
converted." Johnson  then  returned  to 
England  to  collect  his  salary,  which  was 
payable  there. 

The  corporation  in  England  was  repre- 
[  16  ]  sen ted 


STEPHEN     DAYE    AND     HIS     SUCCESSORS 

sented  in  America  by  commissioners.  The 
commissioners  did  not  like  Johnson,  but 
Charles  Chauncy,  president  of  the  college, 
and  the  Reverend  John  Eliot  were  both 
much  pleased  with  him.  Chauncy  and  Eliot 
wrote  strong  letters  to  the  corporation  in 
England  on  Johnson's  behalf,  and  on  ac- 
count of  their  patronage  the  corporation 
in  England  reengaged  Johnson  against  the 
wishes  of  the  commissioners  in  this  country. 
Moreover  the  press,  which  had  been  under 
the  control  of  the  commissioners  since  1659, 
was  now  committed  to  the  care  of  the 
Reverend  John  Eliot. 

Johnson  brought  back  with  him  in  1665  a 
press  of  his  own  and  a  font  of  type  for  the 
corporation  press.  This  made  three  presses 
in  the  Colonies  —  the  corporation  press,  the 
college  press,  which  was  still  being  run  by 
Samuel  Green,  and  Johnson's  own  press. 
Johnson's  plan  was  to  set  up  an  independent 
press  in  Boston  if  he  failed  to  get  the  appoint- 
ment as  manager  of  the  corporation  press. 
The  opening  of  a  rival  printing  office  in 
Boston  and  the  removal  to  that  city  of  the 
[  17  ]  corporation 


STEPHEN     DAYE    AND     HIS     SUCCESSORS 

corporation  press,  whose  facilities  the  col- 
lege needed,  would  be  well-nigh  disastrous 
to  the  interests  of  the  college.  Upon  peti- 
tion of  the  college  authorities,  therefore,  it 
was  made  a  law  that  there  should  be  no 
printing  outside  of  Cambridge. 

This  compelled  Johnson  to  set  up  his  press 
in  Cambridge.  He  was  successful  in  obtain- 
ing the  appointment  as  manager  of  the  cor- 
poration press  and  also  in  securing  exclusive 
use  of  the  new  font  of  type.  The  authorities 
of  the  college  made  several  attempts  to  get 
the  use  of  this  new  font  of  type  for  them- 
selves, but  were  unsuccessful. 

Johnson,  in  setting  up  his  press  on  what 
is  to-day  the  southeast  corner  of  Boylston 
and  Winthrop  Streets  in  Cambridge,  opened 
the  first  independent  printing  press  in  the 
Colonies.  His  first  work  was  a  religious 
book  by  his  friend,  Mr.  Eliot.  This  was 
followed  by  other  religious  works,  and  in 
1666  by  an  Indian  Grammar  for  Mr.  Eliot. 
Johnson  bound  all  the  books  he  printed. 

Both  Johnson   and  Green  realized  that 

the  competition  between  them  was  bad  for 

[18I  their 


The  First  Printing  Press  in  the  United  States.  This 
press  was  brought  from  England  in  1638  and  set  up  by  Stephen 
Daye  in  Cambridge.  Later  it  passed  into  the  hands  of  Samuel 
Green,  one  of  whose  descendants  took  it  to  New  London,  Con- 
necticut, where  it  remained  until  1773.  It  was  then  taken  to 
Norwich,  Connecticut.  Five  years  later  it  was  removed  to 
Dresden,  now  Hanover,  New  Hampshire,  and  thence  to  West- 
minster, Vermont,  where  on  February  12,  1781,  it  was  used  for 
printing  The  Vermont  Gazette  or  Green  Mountain  Post  Boy,  the 
first  newspaper  published  in  Vermont.  In  1783,  George  Hough 
and  Alden  Spooner  moved  it  to  Windsor,  Vermont,  and  used  it 
for  printing  The  Vermont  Journal  and  Universal  Advertiser.  The 
historic  press  is  now  preserved  in  the  State  Capitol  at  Mont- 
pelier,  Vermont. 


[19 


STEPHEN     DAYE    AND    HIS     SUCCESSORS 

their  respective  businesses,  so  they  cooper- 
ated to  some  extent.  The  separate  offices 
of  each  were  nevertheless  still  continued. 
Between  1665  and  1674  Johnson  printed 
twenty  books  alone,  and  nineteen  in  part- 
nership with  Green.  The  corporation,  how- 
ever, still  regarded  Johnson  as  its  official 
printer  whenever  it  had  use  for  its  press, 
which  had  been  loaned  to  Green  for  the 
printing  at  the  college.  Stephen  Daye's 
original  press,  brought  from  England  in 
1639,  had  been  the  college  press  and  was 
well  worn  from  continuous  use.  The  con- 
dition of  this  old  press  had  led  to  the  suc- 
cessful effort  of  the  college  authorities  to 
obtain  the  loan  of  the  corporation  press, 
which  had  been  sent  over  from  England 
in  1659. 

In  spite  of  his  success  in  Cambridge,  John- 
son had  always  been  anxious  to  print  in 
Boston.  In  1674  ne  petitioned  the  General 
Court,  and  the  ban  against  printing  outside 
Cambridge  was  removed.  Johnson  accord- 
ingly bought  a  piece  of  land  in  Boston, 
moved  his  family  there,  and  set  up  the  first 
[  20  ]  printing 


STEPHEN    DAYE    AND    HIS     SUCCESSORS 

printing  office  in  that  city.  But  after  a 
few  months  he  died  —  on  Christmas,  1674. 

The  press  and  type  were  bought  from 
Johnson's  wife  by  John  Foster,  a  Harvard 
graduate.  Whether  the  credit  of  being  the 
first  printer  in  Boston  goes  to  Johnson  or 
Foster  it  is  difficult  to  say.  When  Johnson 
removed  to  Boston  he  was  engaged  in  print- 
ing a  sermon  delivered  by  Samuel  Torrey. 
It  is  believed  that  some  of  the  last  signa- 
tures of  this  sermon  were  printed  in  Boston 
and  thus  constitute  the  first  printing  in  that 
city.  In  the  meantime  Samuel  Green  was 
still  printing  in  Cambridge,  and  continued 
with  his  work,  assisted  from  time  to  time 
by  his  son  Bartholomew,  until  about  1692, 
when  he  apparently  retired  from  business. 

Any  book  printed  in  Cambridge  prior  to 
1700  is  well-nigh  priceless  in  value.  Prob- 
ably the  most  famous  of  these  books  are: 
"The  Bay  Psalm  Book";  the  list  of  Theses 
at  the  Commencement  of  Harvard  College; 
the  first  "Laws  of  Massachusetts  Bay";  the 
"Cambridge  Platform  of  Church  Disci- 
pline," etc.;  the  "Day  of  Doom,"  of  which 
[21]  no 


STEPHEN     DAYE    AND'  HIS     SUCCESSORS 

no  copy  is  known  to  exist;  Eliot's  "In- 
dian Bible";  and  Baxter's  "Call  to  the 
Unconverted,"  an  edition  of  one  thousand 
copies  being  printed,  but  all  of  which  have 
disappeared. 

One  of  the  most  prolific  years  in  the 
printing  sense  was  1668,  in  which  Samuel 
Green  printed  the  following: 

A  Drop  of  Honey  (printed  for  himself); 

The  Rule  of  the  New  Creature; 

The  Way  to  a  Blessed  Estate  in  this  life; 

The  Assembly  of  Divine  Catechism; 

A  Narrative  of  the  Plague  and  Fire  at  London; 

Tidings  from  Rome  the  grand  Trappan; 

Wine  for   Gospel  Wantons,  or   Cautions  against 

Spiritual  Drunkenness; 
Almanack  for  the  Year  1669; 
Spiritual  Milk  for  Boston  Babes; 
Appendix     of     Catechism,      touching     Church 

Government; 
Two  catechisms. 

After  Samuel  Green's  retirement  there 
was  an  interval  in  which  no  printing  was 
done.  However,  printing  was  subsequently 
resumed  by  the  college  and  continued  until 
1800,  when  William  Hilliard  settled  in  Cam- 
bridge, with  a  new  press  and  type,  on  what 
[  22  ]  is 


STEPHEN     DAYE    AND     HIS     SUCCESSORS 

is  now  Hilliard  Street.  On  the  college 
commencement  "broadside"  in  1802  there 
appears  the  imprint,  "University  Press, 
William  Hilliard." 

It  is  apparent  that  Hilliard  obtained  con- 
siderable work  from  the  college,  for  there 
are  extant  various  college  publications  bear- 
ing his  imprint.  As  early  as  1809,  perhaps 
earlier,  Hilliard  had  associated  with  him 
Eliab  W.  Metcalf,  and  had  located  his  plant 
on  Arrow  Street.  In  18 13  Charles  Folsom, 
a  Harvard  graduate  of  the  class  of  18 13 
and  librarian  of  the  college  from    1823  to 

1826,  became  associated  with  Hilliard  and 
Metcalf  in  the  University  Press,  but  there 
is  no  evidence  of  this  in  the  imprints  until 

1827,  when  "and  Company "  was  added  to 
the  names  of  Hilliard  and  Metcalf. 

Folsom,  locally  known  as  the  "Harvard 
Aldus,"  did  much  to  increase  the  high 
reputation  which  the  University  Press  had 
already  gained  for  good  printing.  During 
his  connection  with  the  press,  books  were 
printed  in  Hebrew,  Greek,  Latin,  French, 
Italian,  German,  and  Spanish.  Practically 
[  23  ]  all 


STEPHEN     DAYE    AND     HIS     SUCCESSORS 

all  the  textbooks  used  at  the  college  were 
printed  there. 

In  1842  the  University  Press  passed  into 
the  hands  of  Charles  R.  Metcalf,  Omen  S. 
Keith,  and  George  Nichols.  Within  a  year 
Mr.  Keith  retired  and  Marshall  T.  Bigelow 
entered  the  firm. 

In  1859  the  owners  of  the  press  were 
Welch,  Bigelow  and  Company,  the  plant 
being  located  on  Holyoke  Street.  In  1865 
they  removed  to  the  Brattle  House,  on 
Brattle  Square,  which  had  formerly  been 
used  as  a  hotel.  This  firm  did  a  successful 
business  until  1879.  The  bulk  of  their  work 
was  for  James  R.  Osgood  and  Company, 
the  Boston  publishers,  and  for  the  college. 
Osgood  and  Company  were  publishers  for 
the  country's  best  writers  at  that  time. 
Welch,  Bigelow  and  Company  printed  for 
them  the  productions  of  Holmes,  Sparks, 
Prescott,  Ticknor,  Palfrey,  Judge  Story, 
Everett,  Longfellow,  Hawthorne,  Whittier, 
Emerson,  Lowell,  and  many  others. 

For  some  reason  the  successful  publish- 
ing firm  of  Osgood  and  Company  failed  in 
[24]  1879. 


STEPHEN     DAYE    AND     HIS     SUCCESSORS 

1879.  Welch,  Bigelow  and  Company,  being 
immediately  involved  with  the  Osgood  fail- 
ure, were  themselves  drawn  down.  Fourteen 
years  before  —  in  1865  —  John  Wilson  and 
Son,  printers,  had  moved  out  from  Boston 
and  established  their  plant  on  Holyoke 
Street  in  Cambridge,  in  the  building  from 
which  Welch,  Bigelow  and  Company  had 
removed.  Here  John  Wilson  and  Son  re- 
mained until  1879,  and  upon  the  failure  of 
Welch,  Bigelow  and  Company,  bought  out 
that  concern  in  conjunction  with  Charles  E. 
Wentworth.  The  firm  name  of  John  Wilson 
and  Son  remained  unchanged,  but  they  took 
over  the  title,  "The  University  Press"  used 
by  Welch,  Bigelow  and  Company. 

From  1879  until  1895  the  establishment 
of  John  Wilson  and  Son  printed  successfully 
for  Harvard  College  and  for  different  pub- 
lishers. In  1895  Jonn  Wilson  and  Son  failed, 
and  a  new  corporation  under  the  name  of 
"The  University  Press,  John  Wilson  and 
Son,  Incorporated,"  was  organized  under 
the  laws  of  Massachusetts.  It  was  at  this 
time  that  the  press  was  moved  to  its  present 
[  25  ]  quarters 


STEPHEN     DAYE    AND     HIS     SUCCESSORS 

quarters  —  a  commodious  building  facing 
the  Charles  River,  just  beyond  Brattle 
Square. 

This  establishment  was  the  first  printing 
plant  in  New  England  to  introduce  electric 
motors    for   each  separate   printing  press. 
This  development,  however,  was  in  line  with 
its  previous  history,  for  the  first  Adams  and 
the  first  Hoe  stop-cylinder  presses  made  in 
America  were  used  by  the  University  Press. 
Even  before  cylinder  presses  were  manufac- 
tured in  this  country,  the  University  Press, 
under  the  former  Welch,  Bigelow  and  Com- 
pany   management,    had    imported    from 
France  the  first  cylinder  press  used  in  New 
England.     This    press  was    brought    over 
through  the  efforts  of  Mr.  A.   K.  P. 
Welch  for  the  purpose  of  printing 
a  weekly  called  Every  Satur- 
day^    which     was     pub- 
lished simultaneously 
here    and    in 
England. 


26 


THE  UNIVERSITY  PRESS  OF 
TO-DAY 

HROUGH  nearly  three  cen- 
turies in  the  development  of 
American  printing  since  that 
far-off  day  when  Stephen 
Daye  and  Matthew  toiled 
over  their  crude  press  in  Cambridge,  there 
have  come  down  to  The  University  Press 
traditions  that  shape  its  policies  and  guide 
its  practices  to-day. 

Foremost  among  these  is  pride  in  crafts- 
manship —  that  worthy,  honest  sort  of  pride 
whose  joy  lies  in  the  production  of  a  fine, 
delightful,  admirable  piece  of  work  —  a 
pride  that  rejects  all  but  the  very  best  and 
very  highest  ideals  of  workmanship.  This 
feeling  is  accentuated  by  the  fact  that 
through  The  University  Press  and  its  im- 
mediate predecessors  the  foremost  works 
of  American  literature  have  first  been  pre- 
sented to  the  world.  Here  were  printed  the 
[  27  ]    ,  first 


STEPHEN    DAYE    AND    HIS     SUCCESSORS 

first  editions  of  what  we  now  recognize  as 
the  American  classics,  and  here  the  publi- 
cation of  their  works  was  personally  super- 
vised by  such  illustrious  figures  as  Oliver 
Wendell  Holmes,  John  Greenleaf  Whittier, 
Ralph  Waldo  Emerson,  Henry  David  Tho- 
reau,  Henry  Wadsworth  Longfellow,  Na- 
thaniel Hawthorne,  Francis  H.  Underwood, 
Samuel  A.  Green,  John  Fiske,  Robert  C. 
Winthrop,  Alexander  Agassiz,  Asa  Gray, 
Mary  Baker  Eddy,  and  many  others. 

Surely  here  is  a  history  to  inspire  with  the 
lofty  mission  of  the  press  and  the  nobility 
of  the  printer's  craft !  The  aim  of  The  Uni- 
versity Press  of  to-day  is  to  maintain  those 
fine  traditions  and  prove  worthy  of  that 
history  and  its  inspiration. 

The  University  Press  strives  to  render  to 
its  clients  a  service  that  is  as  complete,  as 
worthy,  and  as  satisfactory  in  these  modern 
times  as  were  the  efforts  of  Stephen  Daye 
and  Matthew  in  their  day.  W7hile  a  printing 
plant  is  primarily  a  manufacturing  estab- 
lishment whose  fundamental  function  is  to 
manufacture  printing,  the  service  of  The 
[  28  ]  University 


STEPHEN     DAYE    AND    HIS     SUCCESSORS 

University  Press  to  its  clients  extends  far 
beyond  the  mere  mechanical  production  of 
printed  matter.  True,  The  University  Press 
takes  pride  in  its  ability  to  produce  good 
printing  economically  and  efficiently,  but 
its  pride  in  that  ability  has  not  narrowed 
its  vision  of  service. 

Constructive  assistance  to  the  user  of 
printing  is  the  touchstone  of  University 
Press  activities.  Anything  that  construc- 
tively aids  the  user  of  printing  to  get  better 
effects  or  more  satisfactory  results  comes 
within  the  scope  of  the  service  of  The  Uni- 
versity Press.  Knowledge  of  the  paper 
markets,  skillful  buying  of  paper,  the  effi- 
cient arrangement  of  the  various  production 
units  within  the  plant,  the  adoption  of  every 
practical  plan  for  promoting  speed  and  econ- 
omy without  impairing  the  quality  of  the 
craftsmanship  —  these  are  some  of  the  more 
general  elements  of  University  Press  service. 

Attractiveness  to  the  eye  is  an  element  of 

highest  importance  in  the  case  of  most  pieces 

of  printed  matter  —  particularly  where  the 

printing  is  to  be  used  for  advertising  and 

[  29  ]  selling 


STEPHEN     DAYE    AND    HIS     SUCCESSORS 

selling  purposes.  The  University  Press 
maintains  a  Design  Department,  where  the 
work  of  clients  is  carefully  laid  out  and 
planned  with  a  view  to  making  sure  that 
the  finished  product  will  be  attractive,  well- 
balanced,  and  easily  read. 

The  University  Press  has  in  its  personnel 
men  thoroughly  imbued  with  the  principles 
of  good  book-making,  and  its  equipment  of 
materials  and  machinery  is  equal  to  the 
largest  tasks. 

Many  years  ago  the  highest  grade  of 
printing  was  found  in  books  of  general  liter- 
ature and  of  standard  authors,  but  during 
the  last  twenty  years  commercial  printing 
and  printing  for  advertising  purposes  have 
shown  a  steady  and  rapid  improvement,  so 
that  to-day  the  highest  expressions  of  the 
arts  of  designing  and  printing  are  required 
in  the  production  of  high-grade  advertising 
and  commercial  literature.  This  was  a  field 
which  naturally  immediately  attracted  The 
University  Press,  and  for  twenty  years  the 
development  of  this  side  of  its  activities 
has  been  more  and  more  rapid,  and  its 
[  30  ]  studies 


STEPHEN    DAYE    AND    HIS     SUCCESSORS 

studies  of  the  fundamentals  underlying 
successful  advertising  have  been  more  and 
more  productive  of  results. 

Underlying  all  the  activities  of  The  Uni- 
versity Press,  of  course   there  are   always 
those   basic   business   principles   which   its 
clients  have  learned  to   take  for  granted: 
courtesy,  fair  dealing,  and  truthful- 
ness— simply  the  gentleman's 
method    of    doing 
business. 


3i 


SELLING  BY  THE  PRINTED  WORD 

T  has  always  been,  and  still 
is,  the  policy  and  practice 
of  The  University  Press  to 
make  its  clients'  problems 
its  own.  Thus,  in  handling 
a  great  volume  of  commercial  printing  for 
many  business  firms,  The  University  Press 
has  been  led  to  undertake  to  work  out 
for  such  clients  the  various  problems  in- 
cident to  advertising-printing.  Printing 
for  advertising  purposes  is  printing  that  is 
intended  to  develop  sales  for  its  sponsors. 
It  is  a  process  of  selling  by  the  printed  word. 
This  process  goes  through  four  stages.  The 
first  is  planning,  where  conditions  are  ana- 
lyzed and  the  campaign  is  carefully  shaped 
so  as  to  bring  back  maximum  returns  at 
minimum  cost.  The  second  is  copy,  where 
the  matter  to  be  printed  must  be  written 
not  only  with  acceptable  literary  skill,  but 
with  a  highly  specialized  type  of  skill  that 
puts  behind  each  word  the  vital  element  of 
[32]  selling 


STEPHEN     DAYE    AND     HIS     SUCCESSORS 

selling  force.  The  third  stage  is  design, 
where  the  physical  presentation  of  the  copy 
is  devised  to  win  favorable  attention  and 
heighten,  so  far  as  possible,  the  selling  force 
of  the  copy.  The  fourth  and  last  stage  is 
multiplication,  where  the  resultant  of  the 
first  three  stages  is  multiplied  by  printing 
as  many  times  as  may  be  needed.  These 
printed  presentations,  thus  worked  out,  con- 
stitute printing-advertising  —  selling  by  the 
printed  word.  To  serve  its  clients  who  use 
printing  for  advertising  purposes,  therefore, 
The  University  Press  has  developed  a  staffof 
specialists  trained  in  the  work  of  producing 
printing-advertising  that  brings  satisfactory 
results.  These  men  are  not  merely  writers; 
they  are  business  planners  and  writer-sales- 
men. The  University  Press  is  thus  able  to 
render  advertisers  a  complete  service — from 
the  preliminary  investigating,  analyzing,  and 
planning  right  through  to  the 
production  of  the  cam- 
paign in  printed 
form. 


[33 


STEPHEN     DAYE    AND     HIS     SUCCESSORS 


The  Washington  Elm.  This  famous  tree,  under 
which  Washington  first  took  command  of  the  Continental 
Army,  stands  on  Garden  Street,  at  the  end  of  Mason  Street, 
just  off  Brattle  Street,  Cambridge.  The  inscription  on 
the  tablet  erected  under  this  tree  reads: 

Under  this  tree 

Washington 

first  took  command 

of  the 

American  Army 

July  3rd,  1775 


[34] 


SOME  HISTORIC  LANDMARKS 

ISTORIC  in  its  origin  and  tra- 
ditions, The  University  Press 
is  likewise  located  in  an  his- 
toric setting.  Cambridge  and 
vicinity  constitute  what  is 
probably  the  greatest  literary  and  educa- 
tional center  in  the  United  States.  Nearly 
all  of  the  leaders  among  American  writ- 
ers—  the  literary  lights  for  which  New 
England  is  famous  —  have  had  their  homes 
within  easy  distance  of  Cambridge.  And 
in  Cambridge  is  located  Harvard  Univer- 
sity, foremost  among  American  educational 
institutions. 

The  University  Press  is  housed  in  a  large 
brick  building,  which  it  owns,  facing  the 
famous  Charles  River.  Within  a  few  min- 
utes' walk  of  the  press  may  be  seen  the  his- 
toric Washington  Elm,  under  which  George 
Washington  first  took  command  of  the  Con- 
tinental Army  in  1775.  Washington  had  a 
[35]  platform 


STEPHEN    DAYE    AND    HIS     SUCCESSORS 

platform  placed  in  the  branches  of  this  tree, 
so  that  from  this  coign  of  vantage  he  might 
observe  the  encamped  army.  This  historic 
shrine  is  visited  every  year  by  large  numbers 
from  this  country  and  abroad. 

Not  far  from  the  Washington  elm  is  the 
site  of  the  shopof  "The  Village  Blacksmith," 
made  immortal  in  Longfellow's  poem,  and 
a  little  farther  afield  may  be  seen  Longfel- 
low's home,  where  practically  all  his  works 
were  written.  The  Longfellow  home  is  a 
place  of  historic  as  well  as  literary  fame. 
The  house  was  built  about  1759  by  Colonel 
John  Vassall,  who,  being  a  Tory,  fled  at  the 
time  of  the  Revolution.  It  was  soon  after- 
ward occupied  by  Colonel  John  Glover 
with  his  regiment.  George  Washington 
made  it  his  headquarters  and  took  posses- 
sion of  it  July  15,  1775.  He  left  in  April, 
1776.  After  that  the  house  was  occupied 
in  succession  by  Nathaniel  Tracy,  Thomas 
Russell,  Andrew  Craigie  (who  entertained 
here  the  Duke  of  Kent,  father  of  Queen 
Victoria),  Jared  Sparks,  Edward  Everett, 
and  Joseph  Worcester  of  dictionary  fame. 
[  36  ]  Longfellow 


STEPHEN    DAYE    AND    HIS     SUCCESSORS 


SW-  \AlL*x*£L,      4t»vttVw^.     aUiaiA*         i\  <W  O         ~ 

Reproduction  of  Drawing  by  Henry  W.  Long- 
fellow. The  site  of  the  smithy  is  at  the  corner  of  Brattle 
and  Story  Streets,  Cambridge.  The  inscription  on  the 
commemorative  stone  reads: 

Near  this  spot 

stood  the 

spreading  chestnut  tree 

and  the  smithy 

referred  to  in 

Longfellow's  Poem 

"The  Village  Blacksmith" 


37 


STEPHEN  DAYE  AND  HIS  SUCCESSORS 

Longfellow  first  roomed  here  in  1837  and 
afterwards  in  1843.  After  the  death  of  Mrs. 
Craigie  he  came  into  full  possession  of  the 
house,  which  stands  to-day  as  it  was  origi- 
nally built  by  Colonel  Vassall,  with  the  en- 
largement by  Dr.  Craigie.    Longfellow  never 


The  Longfellow  House.  Home  of  the  beloved  poet 
at  105  Brattle  Street,  Cambridge.  Built  about  1759  by 
Colonel  John  Vassall.  Washington  made  his  headquar- 
ters here  in  1775  and  1776.  The  house  was  subsequently 
occupied  by  a  number  of  illustrious  men.  Longfellow 
first  lived  here  in  1837,  and  practically  all  his  works  were 
written  here.  The  house  is  still  occupied  by  members 
of  the  Longfellow  family. 

[  38  ]  allowed 


STEPHEN     DAYE    AND    HIS     SUCCESSORS 

allowed  the  house  to  be  altered  in  even  the 
slightest  particular.  The  house  is  still  occu- 
pied by  members  of  the  Longfellow  family. 

"Elmwood,"  the  home  of  James  Russell 
Lowell,  is  another  famous  Cambridge  land- 
mark. This  house  was  built  about  1760 
by  John  Stratton,  from  whose  heirs  it  was 
purchased  by  Lieutenant-Governer  Oliver. 
It  was  at  one  time  the  home  of  Governor 
Elbridge  Gerry,  one  of  the  signers  of  The 
Declaration  of  Independence  and  Vice- 
President  of  the  United  States  from  18 13 
to  18 14.  After  the  Battle  of  Bunker  Hill 
the  house  was  used  as  a  hospital.  Finally 
it  became  the  property  of  Reverend  Charles 
Lowell,  father  of  James  Russell  Lowell,  who 
was  born  here  February  22,  18 19.  Lowell 
wrote  manv  of  his  works  here. 

Brattle  Street  in  Cambridge  has  probably 
played  a  larger  part  in  the  development  of 
American  history  and  literature  than  any 
other  street  in  the  country.  Longfellow's 
home  is  located  on  Brattle  Street,  and  a  list 
of  the  names  of  those  who  have  lived  in 
this  street  would  include  some  of  the  most 
[  39  ]  illustrious 


STEPHEN     DAYE    AND    HIS     SUCCESSORS 


Home  of  James  Russell  Lowell.  Known  as  "Elm 
wood,"  this  historic  house  was  built  about  1760  by  John 
Stratton.  After  the  Battle  of  Bunker  Hill,  it  was  used  as 
a  hospital.  It  was  at  one  time  the  home  of  Governor 
Elbridge  Gerry,  a  signer  of  the  Declaration  of  Inde- 
pendence and  Vice-President  of  the  United  States  from 
1813  to  1814.  The  house  finally  came  into  the  posses- 
sion of  Reverend  Charles  Lowell,  father  of  James  Russell 
Lowell,  who  was  born  here  February  22,  18 19.  Lowell 
wrote  many  of  his  works  in  this  house. 


[40] 


STEPHEN    DAYE    AND    HIS    SUCCESSORS 

illustrious  in  the  history  of  our  country.  At 
one  time  Brattle  Street  was  popularly  desig- 
nated "Tory  Row."  By  far  the  greater 
proportion  of  the  inhabitants  of  Cambridge 
were  true  to  the  Colonies  in  the  struggle  for 
freedom  during  the  Revolution,  but  there 
were  a  few  with  Tory  proclivities  who  were 


Radcliffe  College.  These  two  buildings  are  the 
Elizabeth  Cary  Agassiz  House  and  the  Gymnasium,  as 
sketched  from  the  yard.  Radcliffe  College  offers  to  the 
most  advanced  students  among  the  women  of  the  country 
the  services  of  the  Harvard  University  faculty,  which  can- 
not be  excelled  for  training  and  teaching  ability. 


[41] 


obliged, 


STEPHEN  DA  YE  AND  HIS  SUCCESSORS 


The  Johnston  Gate,  or  West  Gate,  to  Harvard 
College  Yard  was  donated  to  Harvard  by  Mr.  Samuel 
Johnston,  of  Chicago.      The  tablet  on  the  left  reads: 

By  the  General  Court  of  Massachusetts  Bay 

28  October  1636  agreed  to  give  400  £ 
Towards  a  schoale  or  colledge  whearof  200  £ 

To  bee  paid  the  next  yeare  &  200  £ 

When  the  worke  is  finished  &  the  next  court 

To  appoint  wheare  &  w*  building 

15  November  1637  the  colledg  is  ordered 

To  bee  at  Newetowne 

2  May  1638  it  is  ordered  that  Newetowne 

Shall  henceforward  be  called  Cambrige 

13  March  1638-9  it  is  ordered  that  the  colledge 

Agreed  upon  formerly  to  bee  built  at  Cambridg 

Shalbee  called  Harvard  Colledge. 


[42] 


STEPHEN    DAYE    AND    HIS     SUCCESSORS 

The  tablet  on  the  opposite  side  of  the  Johnston  Gate 
reads: 

After  God  had  carried  us  safe  to  New  England 

And  wee  had  builded  our  houses 

Provided  necessaries  for  our  liveli  hood 

Reard  convenient  places  for  Gods  worship 

And  setled  the  civill  government 

One  of  the  next  things  we  longed  for 

And  looked  after  was  to  advance  learning 

And  perpetuate  it  to  posterity 

Dreading  to  leave  an  illiterate  ministery 

To  the  churches  when  our  present  ministers 

Shall  lie  in  the  dust. 

New  Englands  First  Fruits. 


Massachusetts  Hall,  Erected  1720.     This  historic 
building  is  the  oldest  in  Harvard  College  Yard. 


[43 


STEPHEN    DA  YE    AND    HIS     SUCCESSORS 

obliged,  at  the  outbreak  of  hostilities,  to 
leave  their  homes  and,  in  some  cases,  to  flee 
from  the  country.  Brattle  Street  is  about 
two  minutes'  walk  from  The  University 
Press. 

Cambridge  is  indeed  rich  in  historic  land- 
marks, and  many  a  pleasant  hour  may  be 
beguiled  in  viewing  the  delightful  points 
of  interest  in  and  around  Cambridge  which 
are  revered  by  all  Americans  as  shrines  of 
their  patriotism  and  literature. 

And  those  who  love  good  printing,   in 
which  good  literature  always  deserves  to  be 
clothed,  will  find  the  library  of  The  Univer- 
sity Press  a  source  of  pleasure  and  delight. 
Visitors  are  always  welcome  here, 
and  a  map  in  the  back  cover 
of   this   little    book   will 
guide  their  footsteps 
in    the  right 
direction. 


[  44  ]  Home 


HOME  OF  THE  PRINTING  ART 

HE  publication  of  this  mon  thly 
magazine  was  begun  by  The 
University  Press  in  1903. 
Conceived  and  developed  as 
the  "fashion-plate  of  printer- 
dom,"  The  Printing  Art  is  considered  to 
be  the  finest  and  foremost  publication  in 
the  graphic  arts  and  the  advertising  field. 
Briefly  described,  the  magazine  contains 
about  one  hundred  pages,  on  the  average, 
and  measures  9^  inches  by  11%  inches. 
It  is  profusely  illustrated  with  exclusive  and 
artistic  inserts  in  color,  many  of  them  con- 
tributed by  contemporary  printers.  Every 
issue  contains  practical  articles  by  America's 
leading  authorities  on  design,  paper,  lay-out, 
color,  art,  typography,  lithography  in  all 
its  branches,  engraving,  and  allied  sub- 
jects. In  line  with  its  progressive  policy  of 
[  45  ]  bringing 


STEPHEN     DAYE    AND    HIS     SUCCESSORS 

bringing  to  its  readers  the  latest  and  most 
authoritative  word  on  the  use  of  printing 
and  printing-advertising  as  practical,  prof- 
itable business  utilities,  The  Printing  Art 
devotes  much  space  each  month   to  such 
subjects  as  advertising  plans,  copy,  the 
value   of   art  in    advertising,   the 
principles  underlying    adver- 
tising success,  and  falla- 
cies to  be  avoided  in 
advertising. 


[46 


THE  LIBRARY 
OF  THE  UNIVERSITY  PRESS 

N  The  University  Press  library, 
to  which  reference  has  been 
made,  are  collected  many 
choice  books  made  here  in  re- 
cent years.  There  is  in  course 
of  preparation  a  special  collection  of  books 
and  booklets  representative  of  the  best  work 
of  contemporary  printers.  These  are  on 
permanent  exhibition  for  the  visitors  and 
clients  of  The  University  Press.  After  the 
assembling  of  books  made  by  American 
craftsmen,  it  is  the  intention  to  add  those  of 
the  more  prominent  foreign  houses  and  in- 
dividuals and  to  issue  a  catalogue  of  the 
collection. 

Pending   the   completion   of  the   collec- 
tion   and    the   printing   of    this   catalogue 
it    is    a   pleasure    to    make    here   grateful 
[  47  ]      acknowledgment 


STEPHEN     DAYE    AND     HIS     SUCCESSORS 

acknowledgment  to  those  who  have  so 
generously  contributed  examples  of  their 
best  work. 


LIST  OF   CONTRIBUTORS 

"By  their  fruits  ye  shall  know  them  " 

Athenaeum  Press  —  Ginn  &  Company    Cambridge,  Boston 

Barta  Press Cambridge,  Mass. 

Bartlett  Orr  Press New  York  City 

Berkeley  Press  —  Irving  K.  Annable  .    .    .  Boston,  Mass. 
The  Wayside   Press  —  Will   H.  Bradley  . 

formerly  of  Springfield,  Mass. 
The  Britton  Printing  Company  .  .  .  Cleveland,  Ohio 
Horace  Carr  —  The  Printing  Press    .    .   Cleveland,  Ohio 

The  Caxton  Company      Cleveland,  Ohio 

Thomas  Maitland  Cleland,  Artist-Printer  New  York  Cit  y 

Corday  &  Gross  Company Cleveland,  Ohio 

The  De  Vinne  Press New  York  City 

Doubled  ay,  Page  &  Co.     .    .    .    Garden  City,  New  York 
H.  &  W.   B.  Drew  Company     .    .    .    .Jacksonville,  Fla. 

The  DuBois  Press Rochester,  New  York 

W.  A.  Dwiggins,  Printing-Designer  Hingham  Center,  Mass. 

George  H.  Ellis  Company Boston,  Mass. 

The  Faithorn  Company Chicago,  111. 

William  F.  Fell  Company Philadelphia,  Pa. 

Franklin   Printing  Company     ....      Philadelphia,  Pa. 
The  Gilliss  Press  —  Walter  Gilliss  .    .    .    New  York  City 

Frederic  W.  Goudy New  York  City 

Edwin  &  Robert  Grabhom,  The  Studio  Press 

(formerly  of  Indianapolis)   .    .       San  Francisco 
Harvard  University  Press Cambridge,  Mass. 

[  48  ]  Mitchell 


STEPHEN     DAYE    AND     HIS     SUCCESSORS 

Mitchell  Kennerley,  Publisher     ....  New  York  City 

The  Marchbanks  Press New  York  City 

J.  Horace  McFarland  Company     .    .    .  Harrisburg,   Pa. 

McGrath-Sherrill  Company      Boston,  Mass. 

Merrymount  Press  —  D.   B.  Updike  .    .     Boston,  Mass. 

Thomas  B.  Mosher,  Publisher Portland,  Maine 

Norman  T.  A.  Munder  &  Co Baltimore,  Md. 

John  Henry  Nash San  Francisco,  Calif. 

Oswald  Press New  York  City 

Oswald  Publishing  Company New  York  City 

Pinkham  Press Boston,  Mass. 

Plimpton  Press Norwood,  Mass. 

The  Prang  Press       Boston,  Mass. 

Providence  Lithograph  Company  .  .  Providence,  R.  I. 
Redfield-Kendrick-Odell  Company      .    .  New  York  City 

Rockwell    &    Churchill Boston,    Mass. 

Riverside  Press  —  Houghton,  Mifflin 

Company      .    .    .      Boston,  Mass. 

Bruce  Rogers New  York  City 

Rogers  &  Company New  York  City 

William  E.  Rudge,  Inc New  York  City 

Ralph  Fletcher  Seymour,  Printing-Designer  Chicago,  111. 
Benjamin  Sherbow,  Printing-Designer      New  York  City 

Taylor  &  Taylor San  Francisco,  Calif. 

Taylor,  Nash  &  Taylor San  Francisco,  Calif. 

Thomsen-Ellis   Company        Baltimore,   Md. 

The  Torch  Press Cedar  Rapids,  Iowa 

University  of  Chicago  Press  ....  Chicago,  Illinois. 
Wynkoop,  Hallenbeck,  Crawford  Company  New  York  City 
Yale  University  Press    .    .    .  New  Haven,   Connecticut. 


[49 


TWENTY-FIVE  HUNDRED 
Copies  of  this  Historical 
Sketch  were  produced  during 
the  month  of  October,  Nineteen 
hundred  and  twenty-one.  The 
sketches  and  initials  are  from 
the  pen  of  George  F.  Trenholm. 


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